> > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: ALRC Press Centre <[email protected]> > Date: 21 June 2010 16:41 > Subject: INDIA: Kerala, a police state in the making, Act Now! > To: [email protected] > > > To unsubscribe click this > link<http://internal.ahrchk.net/phplist/?p=unsubscribe&uid=46d2b45629a0d5e8caaad6d5a05e2c5e>, > to change preferences click this > link<http://internal.ahrchk.net/phplist/?p=preferences&uid=46d2b45629a0d5e8caaad6d5a05e2c5e> > > *FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE > *PRESS RELEASE > ALRC-PRL-005-2010 > > *A Joint Press Release by Nervazhi and the Asian Legal Resource Centre* > > *INDIA: Kerala, a police state in the making, Act Now!* > > (Hong Kong, June 21, 2009) On 11 May 2010, a Select Committee appointed by > the Kerala Legislative Assembly prepared and published a questionnaire > seeking opinions and advice from the general public, jurists and human > rights organisations concerning the Kerala Police Bill, 2010. The purpose of > the exercise is to receive comments and recommendations concerning the Bill > so that the aspirations of the people of Kerala are reflected in the law > governing the state police, when the Kerala Legislative Assembly finally > enacts the law. > > Nervazhi and the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) today jointly released > a study on the Bill titled *"Kerala, a police state in the making - Act > Now!". <http://www.alrc.net/PDF/ALRC-PRL-005-2010-01.pdf>* > > Nervazhi is a registered human rights organisation, based in Thrissur > district, Kerala. The ALRC is a registered regional human rights > organisation based in Hong Kong. The ALRC enjoys a General Consultative > Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations and have > extensive network of partners in India and other Asian countries. > > Nervazhi has considerable experience concerning human rights issues, in > particular those related to the functioning of law enforcement agencies in > Kerala. Justice institutions, in particular the police, prosecution and the > judiciary have been ALRC's area of focus since its inception in 1986 and > thus its field of expertise. The ALRC has extensive knowledge about the > functioning of police in various Asian jurisdictions, in particular India. > The ALRC has assisted the drafting of similar laws in South Asian countries, > the latest, a law criminalising torture and custodial death which is > currently under the consideration of the Bangladesh parliament. > > For preparing the comments and suggesting recommendations to the Bill, > Nervazhi and ALRC have consulted experts in the field, including senior > police officers serving and retired in India, jurists, academics, > journalists and above all the people of Kerala. For this very reason, the > comments and recommendations will reflect a combination of expertise > emerging from this knowledge base. > > We have no claims whatsoever that the following pages contain a > comprehensive analysis of the Bill, but we are certain that the Bill, as it > stands now has the potential to turn Kerala into a police state. The > comments and recommendation are thus made with an intention to prevent this. > We have analysed the Bill bearing in mind various human rights cases that we > have come across from Kerala in particular and India in general. We have > studied the jurisprudence developed internationally concerning law > enforcement agencies and their operational standards and the case law > developed by the courts in India, the Supreme Court of India in particular, > concerning the rights of the citizens while in custody and the duty of the > state as well as that of the law enforcement agencies in dealing with the > citizens while engaged in law enforcement duties. > > We have held consultations with the general public about the Bill. The use > of simple language in the document, understandable to the common person, is > thus not an intentional use of any editorial style, but is the result of the > effort taken to write down the opinions the ordinary Indian living in Kerala > provided us concerning the Bill. It reflects the collective wisdom of the > ordinary people, rooted in their experience of dealing with the police as a > state institution. > > The recommendations also reflect this collective voice of the people of > Kerala and their hope that their police can be corrected, provided the law > governing the police is also right. Almost everyone whom we have consulted > has informed us in various forms that the state of affairs of the Kerala > police is deplorable at the moment. They want the new law to be a tool to > bring change to this unacceptable status quo. > > The ALRC, along with the comments and recommendations is also submitting a > model law for the consideration of the Legislature to criminalise torture > and extrajudicial executions. > > We hope that the recommendations and comments will be duly considered and > appropriate changes incorporated in the Bill. We are certain that by > incorporating the recommendations in the Bill, the Kerala State Police will > be provided with a statutory framework to discharge their duties, thereby > contributing to develop India, a country of great people into a mature > democracy. > > A copy of the comments and recommendations with the copy of the original > Bill is sent either by email, fax or post to Honourable Governor of Kerala, > Honourable Speaker and all other members of the Kerala Legislative Assembly, > Judges of the Supreme Court and the Kerala High Court, the National and > State Human Rights Commissions, the Director General of Police - Kerala and > all print and electronic media in Kerala. > > The comments and recommendations with the Draft Bill can be downloaded from > here <http://www.alrc.net/PDF/ALRC-PRL-005-2010-01.pdf>. > > # # # > > *About Nervazhi and ALRC: The Asian Legal Resource Centre is an > independent regional non-governmental organisation holding general > consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United > Nations. It is the sister organisation of the Asian Human Rights Commission. > The Hong Kong-based group seeks to strengthen and encourage positive action > on legal and human rights issues at the local and national levels throughout > Asia. Nervazhi is a registered human rights organisation, based in Thrissur, > Kerala state, India.* > > > *AHRC New Weekly Digest - an easy way to receive all your Human Rights > news in just one weekly email - subscribe > here<http://internal.ahrchk.net/phplist/?p=subscribe&id=31> > .* > ----------------------------- > Asian Human Rights Commission > 19/F, Go-Up Commercial Building, > 998 Canton Road, Kowloon, Hongkong S.A.R. > Tel: +(852) - 2698-6339 Fax: +(852) - 2698-6367 > > > *Please consider the environment before printing this email.* > > > > > powered by phplist <http://www.phplist.com> v 2.10.5, © tincan > ltd<http://tincan.co.uk/powered> > >
-- Adv Kamayani Bali Mahabal +919820749204 skype-lawyercumactivist "After a war, the silencing of arms is not enough. Peace means respecting all rights. You can’t respect one of them and violate the others. When a society doesn’t respect the rights of its citizens, it undermines peace and leads it back to war.” -- Maria Julia Hernandez www.otherindia.org www.binayaksen.net www.phm-india.org www.phmovement.org www.ifhhro.org -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights movement" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/humanrights-movement?hl=en.
